Science fiction fans prepare yourselves! The Rise of the Planet of the Apes film will be hitting theaters this August 5th and is certainly poised for greatness, much the way the original set of films were.
If you were disheartened by the sub-par remake by filmmaker Tim Burton, you weren’t the only one. I was so disappointed that I almost shrugged off this prequel.
But based on behind the scenes footage as well as the first trailer, my faith has been renewed.
The brand new second trailer for the film dropped last night, and I must say it looks amazing.
Check it out and comment on whether or not we’ll be seeing you in line at the theaters this August!
Please stop making remakes of classic movies. I understand that you are out of ideas and feel the need to make a fast buck from ignorant people, but couldn’t you just make a bunch more movies about twinkly pedophile vampires and shirtless wolfboys? The idiots of the world eat that shit up. Just leave our great movies the hell alone.
Ah, I see that you are doing a “contemporized adaptation” of Total Recall. Out of all of Philip K. Dick‘s stories, you chose to do one that has already been made. Cool.
Oh, and I see that you’re having Len Wiseman, the director of such amazing flicks as Underworld and Live Free or Die Hard, direct it. Where could this possibly go wrong? He can only make it better, I’m sure. This time around, the whore in the bar on Mars will have four tits!
Paul Verhoeven made the original into a fantastic film full of gratuitous violence and cheesy one-liners. He made a film where Sharon Stone was brutally shot and killed. These are moments that you can not recreate.
I, for one, will not be paying to see your terrible movie. However, I may pirate it so that I can rip it to pieces after watching the mess that it surely will be. I hope this remake tanks, just like I hope your goddamned remake of The Crow blows up in your faces.
Hollywood, I am dissapointed in you.
Sincerely,
Eric J
source: Len Wiseman to Direct ‘Total Recall’ Remake [Cinematical]
Nick Cave, an Australian singer who wrote the brilliant 2005 movie The Proposition, has decided to piss on the memory of Brandon Lee while taking a crap all over his credibility by working on a remake of The Crow.
This new (and likely terrible) version of the movie will be directed by Stephen Norrington (Blade), a director who claimed he would never direct again after Sean Connery handed him his ass during the filming of League of Extraordinary Gentlemen. Norrington actually already wrote the script for the remake, but has brought in Nick Cave to revise it.
Norrington stated,
“Whereas Alex Proyas’s original was gloriously gothic and stylised (sic), the new movie will be realistic, hard-edged and mysterious, almost documentary-style.”
I love you Stephen. Thank you and everyone one else in the film industry for gang-raping the childhood memories of millions of people over the past several years. We really do appreciate it when great movies are remade by shitty directors and turned into fluffy garbage for the teen-aged Twilight douchetards to drool over. Thanks.
source: Nick Cave penning remake of The Crow [Guardian]
“Let Me In” is a remake of an absolutely amazing 2008 film from Sweden called “Let The Right One In” (Låt den rätte komma in) which is based on a novel by John Ajvide Lindqvist. The trailer below looks like the American version is going to be a shot-for-shot remake, but I’m ok with that. If being remade in English allows a broader audience to watch this magnificent film, then so be it.
Directed by Matt Reeves (Cloverfield), “Let Me In” is about Owen (played by Kodi Smit-McPhee), a bullied child who is befriended by a mysterious new neighbor, Abby (played by Chloe Moretz). Abby doesn’t go outside during the day, doesn’t ever eat food and will only come into a room once she is invited. Owen falls for his new neighbor, who seems to respond in kind and protects him from the bullies. Then all hell breaks loose.
That’s as much as I am going to give away about this movie. If you are into horror (and vampire flicks in particular), the original is a masterpiece. More than just a mere horror flick, however, the movie is a testament to the power of your “first love” and a touching coming-of-age story. Whether or not the remake will be able to compare remains to be seen, but I am very happy with the casting of Chloe Moretz (Hit Girl in Kick-Ass) as Abby (Eli in the original).
Check out the trailer below!
The original version (“Let The Right One In”) is currently available on Netflix Instant, so if you’re a subscriber I definitely suggest you go check it out.
“Let Me In” is due to be released October 1, 2010.
It seems that most of Hollywood movies of recent years have been based on remakes whether it’s a remake of a movie, book, TV show, musical – the majority of them suck. But here is a list of movies that are actually not too bad.
15. ‘Little Shop of Horrors’ (1986)
Based On: Roger Corman’s horror comedy, ‘Little Shop of Horrors’ (1960)
Director Frank Oz’s second film on the list is this hilariously twisted musical comedy starring Rick Moranis and Ellen Greene. Between the singing, flesh-eating plant Audrey II (voiced by the lead singer of the Four Tops, Levi Stubbs), Steve Martin as a deliciously sadistic dentist, and the doo-wop chorus girls, this is a freaky but fun musical. We dare you to not catch yourself singing “Little shop/Little shop of horrors” after watching the quirky and campy remake.
14. ‘The Ring’ (2002)
Based On: Hideo Nakata’s horror flick, ‘Ringu’ (1998)
Gore Verbinski’s gothic American take on the outrageously popular Japanese original doesn’t have the “best of horror” credentials of ‘The Exorcist’ or ‘The Thing,’ but it’s chilling enough to elicit audience-wide yelps from even genre aficionados. Without a crazy body count or masked murderers, this is the epitome of scary minus the gore. Naomi Watts is unforgettable as a mom who will stop at nothing to uncover the seemingly unknowable mystery surrounding a killer VHS tape.
13. ‘Father of the Bride’ (1991)
Based On: Vincente Minnelli’s wedding comedy ‘Father of the Bride’ (1950)
If you learn anything from this list, it’s this: when in doubt, enlist Steve Martin to star in a comedy remake. Director Charles Shyer (who’s also responsible for the remakes ‘Alfie,’ ‘The Parent Trap’ and the recently announced ‘Private Benjamin’) cast Martin in Spencer Tracy’s iconic role as the titular father, and the result is a terrifically sweet performance (with help from fellow comedy masters like Diane Keaton and Martin Short).
12. ‘Heaven Can Wait’ (1978)
Based On: Alexander Hall’s supernatural comedy, ‘Here Comes Mr. Jordan’ (1941)
Writer-director-star Warren Beatty changed the profession from boxer to quarterback, but the plot’s are essentially the same — an angel accidentally kills off a star athlete several decades too early, so he’s reincarnated in the body of a womanizing billionaire (that should answer the question of why Beatty chose to redo this story). A screwball comedy with a subtly biting ’70s edge, Beatty’s remake is still a charmer 30-plus years later.
11. ‘Invasion of the Body Snatchers’ (1978)
Based On: Don Siegel’s alien-horror classic, ‘Invasion of the Body Snatchers’ (1956)
Horror devotees still debate, three decades after the remake’s release, whether Philip Kaufman’s special-effects-aided version is as good as (or better!) than its predecessor. We’ll leave it to the genre experts to decide, but one thing’s for sure, both are masterpieces compared to the two subsequent remakes. Smart, suspenseful and socially conscious, this is the kind of crafty psychological thriller that even horror-sci-fi naysayers could love.
10. ‘A Star is Born’ (1954)
Based On: William Wellman’s showbiz drama, ‘A Star is Born’ (1937)
Director George Cukor revived a fading Judy Garland’s career with the comeback role of a lifetime. Playing a talented rising star who falls for James Mason’s controlling, alcoholic singer (James Mason), Garland gave the performance of her career and cemented the unforgettable Ira Gershwin-Harold Arlen-produced standard ‘The Man That Got Away’ into her repertoire. Yes, it was made specifically to prop up Garland, but she delivered the movie equivalent of an amazing one-woman show .
9. ‘Ocean’s 11′ (2001)
Based On: Lewis Milestone’s heist flick, ‘Ocean’s 11′ (1960)
Steven Soderbergh’s remake of the Vegas-set caper stars a much more diverse group of actors than the A-list best friends who headlined the original, but the ensemble’s collective energy is so infectious, it’s easy to believe Clooney, Pitt, Damon, Cheadle and co. are a Hollywood reincarnation of the celebrated Rat Pack. Even the villainous casino owner, played by Andy Garcia, is likable — so much so that he, along with Ocean’s entire crew, returned for two sequels.
8. ‘A Fistful of Dollars’ (1964)
Based On: Akira Kurosawa’s samurai drama, ‘Yojimbo’ (1961)
Sergio Leone’s first Spaghetti Western is more important for introducing the world to Clint Eastwood’s infamous Man With No Name, than for being an unofficial Kurosawa remake. With his air of mystery, narrowed eyes and cool aloofness, Eastwood’s lawless character was so engrossing that Leone’s violent retelling spawned two ‘Dollar’ sequels starring Eastwood’s “Stranger.” Not bad for a relatively unknown director and a star trying to break free from his TV persona.
7. ‘The Fly’ (1986)
Based On: Kurt Neumann’s horror classic, ‘The Fly’ (1958)
Jeff Goldblum has starred in bigger blockbusters (‘Jurassic Park,’ ‘Independence Day’), but to us, he’ll forever be remembered for his very first performance as an eccentric scientist in David Cronenberg’s excellent (and very different) remake. Part graphic horror, part graphic romance (it is a Cronenberg movie, after all) co-starring Geena Davis, the movie was both a commercial and critical success that completely transcended the campy original.
6. ‘The Departed’ (2006)
Based On: Andrew Lau and Alan Mak’s Hong Kong crime-thriller ‘Infernal Affairs’ (2002)
Who would’ve thought that Martin Scorsese would finally score Oscar gold for a story not about the New York City mob, but the Irish gangsters up in Boston. Scorsese’s mind-blowing drama about cops, criminals and those who secretly cross the line between both worlds, is nothing short of extraordinary. Starring most of the best actors in Hollywood (Nicholson, DiCaprio, Damon, Baldwin, Sheen, Wahlberg, Farmiga), it’s nearly Shakespearean in scope and scale.
5. ‘The Magnificent Seven’ (1960)
Based On: Akira Kurosawa’s epic ‘The Seven Samurai’ (1954)
Kurosawa’s samurai films obviously spoke to American directors, and John Sturges doesn’t disappoint with his brilliant Westernization featuring seven gunmen hired to protect a besieged Mexican village. The seven spectacular action stars alone make this worth watching (Yul Brynner, Steve McQueen, Charles Bronson, James Coburn, Robert Vaughn and Horst Buchholz — all of whom truly are magnificent), not to mention the epic gunfight sequences.
4. ‘Cape Fear’ (1991)
Based On: J. Lee Thompson’s stalker thriller, ‘Cape Fear’ (1962)
Martin Scorsese’s second remake in the top 10 is his modernization of Thompson’s infamous 1962 crime thriller. Robert De Niro is frighteningly menacing and seductive as Max Cady, the ex-con out for revenge who Robert Mitchum immortalized. Nick Nolte holds his own as the attorney Cady is threatening, but it’s a teenage Juliette Lewis who steals the show as the object of Cady’s creepy obsession. The squeamish should stick to the excellent original, but this is one of Scorsese’s best.
3. ‘The Man Who Knew Too Much’ (1956)
Based On: Alfred Hitchcock’s first ‘The Man Who Knew Too Much’ (1934)
This is the only entry of a director remaking his own film (although plenty of other filmmakers have done it). Hitchcock kept the basic premise of his early thriller: a family on vacation stumbles upon top-secret information that leads to their child’s kidnapping, but he updated the setting, shot in color and cast bonafide Hollywood sweethearts James Stewart and Doris Day in the subsequent film. Hitchcock himself proclaimed it the superior version, and who are we to argue with his genius?
2. ‘Scarface’ (1983)
Based On: Howard Hawks’ gangland drama, ‘Scarface’ (1932)
Brian De Palma’s remake is a cultural phenomenon — the kind of movie that nearly 30 years later is still regularly referenced. The genius behind De Palma and screenwriter Oliver Stone’s update is switching from the Italian mob to the Cuban cartels in Miami’s cocaine-fueled drug boom. Al Pacino’s machine-gun-wielding kingpin Tony Montana is as iconic as Michael Corleone, with even more quotable lines, like, “Say hello to my little friend,” or “In this country, you gotta make the money first…”
1. ‘The Thing’ (1982)
Based On: Howard Hawks’ ‘The Thing’ (1952)
Considering this list could’ve been comprised solely of horror films — there are just that many remakes in the genre — it should come as no surprise that John Carpenter’s horror gem is No. 1. A known master of paranoia and suspense, Carpenter’s take on a parasitic alien that can shape-shift into any thing or any body is both bloody disgusting and bloody brilliant. Never has working in a remote outpost seemed scarier, and never has an awesomely bearded Kurt Russell been this good.
What do you think? What are the best Hollywood remakes of all time?
source: The 25 Best Movie Remakes of All Time [Movie Fone]
NCM Fathom, Warner Home Video and Turner Classic Movies present The Wizard of Oz 70th Anniversary Hi-Def Event featuring the first ever High Definition presentation in movie theatres nationwide of The Wizard of Oz.
This One Night Event will take place in over 440 movie theatres nationwide on Wednesday, September 23rd at 7:00 p.m. (local time).
In addition to the feature presentation of The Wizard of Oz, this exclusive event will include a special introduction by Robert Osborne, a classic film historian and host of Turner Classic Movies, followed by “To Oz! The Making of a Classic”; a look into how L. Frank Baum’s classic novel was transformed into one of the most beloved films of all time including archival interviews, behind-the-scenes footage and rare musical outtakes.
Also featured will be an exclusive clip of the Scarecrow, Ray Bolger, dancing in High-definition for the very first time.
source: The Wizard of Oz 70th Anniversary Hi-Def Event [ncm]
Sometimes I really really hate the bosses in Hollywood and half of the crap they churn out, this is definitely one of those times.
According to new reports, Hayden Panettierre attended a singing audition with Kenny Ortega, the director for the remake of Footloose.
If you remember – Zac Efron was originally set to play the lead role of Ren but dropped out, he has since been replaced by Gossip Girl star Chace Crawford. The role was played by Kevin Bacon back in 1984 when the movie first came out.
Well an insider says when Hayden auditioned for the role of Ariel “they were really impressed, no one realized what a good singer she is.”
A rep for the actress wouldn’t comment on it, but as we all know Hayden isn’t the worst singer in the world because last year she released a song called Wake Up Call.
Country singer and Dancing With The Stars dancer Julianne Hough is also in the running for the role that Hayden Panettierre is going for.
I would rather they not make the movie at all, but since we don’t have a choice who would you like to see in it?
L.A. Times’ “Hero Complex” got the confirmation but mentions that Warner Bros. have been considering changing the name of the property to avoid the inevitably negative comparisons to Warner Bros.’ flop Speed Racer, another live action movie based on a popular cartoon.
There’s no word on who might be directing although previous rumors have pegged the team of Andy Fickman and Dwayne Johnson possibly reuniting for the third time after the recent Race to Witch Mountain.
Who ever thought the day would come when Jodie Marsh actually looks like a lady with some class as opposed to looking like a beat up hooker? Well I know I never thought I would see that day, but it has finally come.
In a new show on the BBC the trashy model decides to get a make under in order to ditch her look and try and be as elegant as she can, shockingly it actually turns out not so bad.
Jodie removes her make up and replaces her tacky clothes with a green and white grown, covering up most of her body (for a change) and puts on some light make up and a red wig.
[Click thumbnails for a larger view]
Sadly they can’t cover up her tattoos but at least she looks better than she did right? Or do you prefer Jodie Marsh the way she usually looks?
Howard Stern is set to produce a remake of the 1979 movie ‘Rock N Roll High School’, it has been revealed.
Stern, who is famous for his shock-jock radio show on Sirius, will work with producer Larry Levinson on the project, reports Variety, and the pair have hired Alex Winter to write the script.
Winter is best known as one half of the duo Bill & Ted from the movies ‘Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure’ and ‘Bill & Ted’s Bogus Journey’ in which he co-starred with Keanu Reeves.
The original movie starred the Ramones who helped a group of rebellious students overthrow their conservative school principal.
It’s not yet been revealed who will play the Ramones’ role in the movie.
MTV is doing the time warp on a remake of 1975 cult classic “The Rocky Horror Picture Show.” Many feel that MTV is jacking with taboo — that the remake shouldn’t happen.
Lou Adler, exec producer of the original film, is partnering with BermanBraun and Fox Television Studios on the new rendition. The two-hour remake will use the original screenplay by Jim Sharman and Richard O’Brien but may also include music not featured in the original.
Timetable for the start of production hasn’t been established yet but the partners aim to move forward quickly once the final elements are in place.
“I’d like to see it shown a year from this coming Halloween, but that’s up to MTV,” Adler said.
BermanBraun principal Gail Berman will exec produce the project along with partner Lloyd Braun. Berman has been attached to a “Rocky Horror” remake dating back to her tenure as Fox programming chief (Daily Variety, July 1, 2002).
The original “Rocky Horror,” starring Tim Curry, Susan Sarandon, Barry Bostwick and Meatloaf, has grossed $140 million in domestic box office over the years, primarily from the wallets of youthful audience members who have shown up for midnight screenings over the past three decades.
Hollywood is attempting to destroy every good thing we have left.
source: MTV readies ‘Rocky Horror’ redux [variety]
